Bonus numbers are coming in, and the mood on Wall Street seems to be an awful lot better than in London.

Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup announced bonus payouts to staff last Thursday, while JP Morgan is expected to communicate payouts to New York-based staff on Tuesday, with London-based bankers finding out on Wednesday.

One clear theme that has emerged is the widening pay gap between London and New York staff, with payouts in the US far outstripping those in Europe.

Jason Kennedy, chief executive officer of recruitment firm Kennedy Group, who has just returned from New York, said: “The feedback from the Americans is simple. They are saying: ‘We do not need to pay up in Europe, because if we pay them their base, they are happy to stay there and not really move. Therefore, we do not need to spend excessive cash on bonuses.’”

The difference in payouts reflects the sharp disparity in regional performance in 2013, with North America making up 56% of global investment banking fees last year, the highest share since 1998. This performance was echoed in sales and trading.

In Citigroup’s full-year results, for example, the bank posted a 22% rise in revenues in securities and banking in North America, excluding accounting adjustments. The Europe, Middle East and North Africa region posted a 14% decline, in contrast.

One City of London recruiter said: “US bankers are now on a different payscale to Emea, in almost all the houses really.”

Another recruiter said: “When Europe is up and the US is down, the US gets protected. When Europe is down and the US is up, Europe gets left with nothing.”

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The early indications in Europe on the size of the payouts are that, as expected, there is a greater level of differentiation between top performers and their colleagues, between senior staff and juniors and between different businesses than in previous years.

Fixed income bonus pools are said to be down by about 20%, with those working in rates trading hardest hit. Equities sales and trading bonus pools were said to be flat or up, while investment banking division bonus pools increased.